Vacuum
by BreadThief98
Summary: On his first space battle, Ezra's craft is disabled and he is ejected into space. While Ezra miraculously survives, he is far from unharmed. Rated T just in case.
1. Inferno

**_Don't ask me how I come up with this stuff. Blame the plot bunnies of doom. This is just your run of the mill Ezra!whump fic. Fair warning, this does have descriptions of injuries in it._**

 _"Spectre-6,"_ Hera yelled through her fighter's comlink. _"Keep an eye on your left. There are TIEs closing in."_

"Copy that," Ezra replied. He swerved his A-wing, much like Hera had taught him, and took out a couple of TIEs, watching in horror as two more rebel fighters were destroyed.

 _"We are almost ready to jump,"_ Sato said from the _Liberator_. _"Get ready!"_

Suddenly, Ezra's craft took a hit. "Karabast!" he cried. "My hyperdrive's out!"

 _"Get to the light cruiser,"_ Sato ordered.

"Copy that," Ezra replied. "My first space mission and I've already busted a hyperdrive."

 _"Don't worry,"_ Hera reassured. _"It happens to the best of us."_

Ezra turned his craft around and sped towards the light cruiser. Much to his horror, three TIEs locked onto him. Ezra tried to shake them but failed.

"Got three on me. I can't shake them!"

 _"I'm coming Ezra!"_

]o[

 _"I'm coming Ezra!"_

"What's going on?" Kanan breathed, hating the fact that he couldn't see what was happening. "Is he alright?"

"He's got three fighters on his tail," Sabine replied. "Hera's on her way but…"

Kanan's heart began pounding and he found himself poised to bolt to the light cruiser's hangar if he needed to.

 _"Karabast!"_ Ezra yelled. _"I'm hit! I-"_ Ezra screamed as his comm signal died.

 _"NO!"_ Hera yelled.

Kanan didn't hesitate. He didn't stop when he heard Zeb mutter a curse. He didn't stop when he heard Sabine shriek. He kept running until he reached the hangar, even though he knew what he would find.

]o[

The next few moments happened in slow motion for Hera. As she shot down the last of the TIE fighters, a lucky shot grazed Ezra's engine. The impact started an inferno in the ship. She heard Ezra scream as his shot his hands out as if to protect himself from the explosion that came next.

She could only watch in horror as the fighter disintegrated, leaving Ezra floating in space, badly burned.

"NO!" she yelled. Was Ezra alive? In a few minutes, it wouldn't matter. She zipped towards where Ezra was floating, vaguely remembering shouting orders at the remaining pilots to cover her, as she slowed down right in front of Ezra. She caught him on the nose of her fighter and began pushing him towards the light cruiser.

]o[

"Hera," Kanan said into his comlink. "Where is he?"

 _"In front of my craft. I'm pushing him in!"_

"There's no time!" Kanan replied. "We only have a few seconds."

Kanan dove into the Force and reached out towards where he could sense his dying padawan. Using the Force and the momentum from Hera's craft, he pulled him into the light cruiser and lowered him to the ground.

He could hear hurried footsteps and the sound of Hera's craft landing. He could hear Sato give the order to jump as the airlock doors closed. He could feel the lurch of the ship as they jumped into hyperspace. He could hear the hurried footsteps as medics arrived. Kanan didn't care. He ran as fast as he could towards where he placed Ezra. However, Hera grabbed his arm. "Kanan, wait."

"But-"

"Kanan, there's nothing you can do. Let the medics do their work."

Kanan turned to Hera, alarm evident in his voice. "Is he breathing?"

"I don't know…" Hera breathed. Her fears were confirmed when she saw one of the medics begin CPR. Sabine and Zeb appeared right behind them and Hera could have sworn Sabine was about to faint. Zeb was shaking and Kanan had Hera's hand in a vice-like grip.

Kanan could hear one of the medics count to thirty. No sign of life. Kanan began shaking. He broke out of Hera's grip and despite her objections, he rushed to Ezra's side and grabbed his hand, shuddering upon feeling the frost that covered it. "Sir," one of the medics said. "Please step back."

"I'm not going to step back!" Kanan snapped. "That's my kid!"

The medics ignored him and began focusing on trying to save Ezra's life. They must have done things like this before and have probably had to work around scared loved ones as well.

Another count to thirty. Still no signs of life within the teenager.

Kanan gripped Ezra's limp hand both of his own. _"Come on…"_ Kanan thought. _"Come on. You're stronger than this! Come on!"_

Just as the medics were about to give up, Ezra let out a tiny cough, followed by gasping and wheezing and even more coughing. Kanan heard the medics back away and call for a gurney. When he felt Ezra begin to shiver, Kanan let out a sigh of relief. "Thank the Force…" he muttered.

"K…K…" Kanan could hear Ezra try to say his name, but with what the poor kid just went through, it would be a miracle if he managed to get anything out.

"Don't talk," Kanan said. "You need to take it easy for a moment." He sensed Hera approach him from behind. "How bad is it?" he asked.

"He's got some pretty nasty burns," Hera replied. "I don't know how he even survived his ship exploding…"

"He must have used the Force to shield himself from the explosion…" Kanan mused. He heard Ezra shift on the durasteel and cringed at the resulting cry of pain that was followed shortly by another rough cough.

"Don't move," Hera said softly.

The gurney approached and Kanan lifted Ezra onto it. He followed the gurney out with the rest of the crew behind him.

 _ **Fun fact: Apparently, you can survive in a vacuum for up to about a minute. Ezra was in space for about 45 seconds. Way to cut it close there Ezra. Hope you enjoyed the first chapter!**_


	2. Slumber

_**Here is Chapter Two! Before we start, there is a poll on my profile asking who your favorite OC is from my fanfics. I put that up because I really want feedback and see which character is the favorite so I can double check what I did with him or her and apply them to future characters, so please vote in my poll. It would really help me. If you can't, tell me in the reviews. Thank you so much for the support so far and thank you for helping me improve.**_

* * *

The first thing Ezra registered when he regained consciousness was the fact that he was covered in bandages. There was a sickly-sweet scent stuck in his nose and an equally sweet taste in his mouth. He was lying on something soft and he could hear nothing but the steady rhythm of a heart monitor and the ambience of a ship. He opened his eyes and found he couldn't see out of one of them. Not that it mattered. It was dark in the room anyway. Something was plugged into his arm and there were straps holding him down.

Frantic, Ezra struggled to free himself, whimpering in pain as his still healing burns protested against the movement. The heart monitor progressively began to beep faster. He heard a hissing sound, followed by something cold flowing into his veins. Ezra suddenly felt dizzy. His eyelids grew heavy and he was once again under the warm waters of sleep.

* * *

The next time Ezra came around, the straps were still there and the room was still dark. Where the kriff was he? Ezra weakly tried to move once again. Moving didn't hurt as much as it did last time, but it still stung quite a bit.

However, just like last time, the tube in his arm hissed, the blasted liquid flowed into Ezra's veins, and once again, he knew no more.

Oh, well. At least the sickly-sweet scent was gone.

* * *

When Ezra came around again, his eyelids were extremely heavy. He didn't even try to open them. The bandages were still there and Ezra could sense someone nearby.

The straps, much to Ezra's dismay were still there. He wanted to try to get free again, but he hesitated upon remembering what happened the past few times. His muddled mind tried to decide what to do, but he honestly couldn't think straight enough.

 _"Third…time's…the charm…I…guess…"_

Ezra tried shifting, grunting as he did so, but the person who was nearby laid a hand on Ezra's forehead.

"Don't move. Go back to sleep. You're safe."

Ezra decided not to tempt the blasted tube and let Kanan's calming presence lure him back to sleep once more.

* * *

Hera stood in the light cruiser's medcenter, staring at the scene in front of her. Ezra was still strapped down as a precaution. The teenager's body was badly burned in the explosion and it was a small miracle he survived both the burns and the fact that he was tossed into the never-ending, icy-cold, soul-sucking darkness of space. After they pulled him out of the bacta tank, they strapped him down to keep him from moving and aggravating his injuries. They even put a tube into his arm that would release medicine to knock him back out if he woke up. Kanan thought it was a bit much, but eventually shut up about it after Ezra managed to activate the tube twice within the past couple of weeks after trying to get up.

"This is all my fault."

The words came out of Hera's mouth before she could stop it. Kanan turned in her general direction. "Hera," Kanan replied. "This isn't your fault." Hera wanted to laugh. What did she expect? Before Hera could open her mouth, Kanan continued. "You weren't the one who shot him down. And before you say you're the one who let Ezra come with you, keep in mind that he volunteered. This was his choice."

Hera nodded, tears springing to her eyes. She found herself moving towards the bed, sitting next to Kanan and smoothing Ezra's hair, noting how soft and messy it was without all the gel Ezra insisted in putting in it. Hera forced herself back into reality, as she had other news. "The doctors are taking the straps off tomorrow but they're going to keep him out for a few more days."

"That's good news," Kanan replied.

Hera nodded. "He's going to be okay. Come back to the _Ghost_. You need sleep."

Kanan shook his head. "I'm not leaving."

"Kanan, if you don't come back, I will stun you and personally drag you back myself."

Kanan sighed. "Okay. But only for a few hours." He stood up and waited for Hera to join him. Hera's eyes fell on a blanket folded up on a counter. She then turned to Ezra, who wore only medical issue pants. His entire torso was exposed and covered in bandages and the medbay was cold. She quietly picked up the blanket and tucked Ezra in like a mother would do to a child.

The two Spectres left without another word.

* * *

Zeb and Chopper found themselves in the same room together. They weren't alone, but they might as well have been, with Ezra passed out on the bed and Kanan passed out in his chair.

"Hera's going to throw a hissy fit when he sees Kanan here and not in his cabin sleeping," Zeb whispered off-handedly to no one in particular.

Chopper warbled something in reply and Zeb rolled his eyes. "I'm going to take that as an agreement. I'm not in the mood to argue right now."

Zeb turned to Chopper and noticed that he hadn't turned away from Ezra yet.

"Staring at him like that isn't going to heal those burns any faster."

Chopper warbled once more, probably telling Zeb to shut up. However, it wasn't in that snarky tone Zeb had come to recognize. It was something sedated, sad almost.

Zeb sighed and patted Chopper's dome. "I don't like seeing him like this either. I always figured he'd want to go out with a bang but I don't think he meant this. I can't imagine what he went thorough and…" Zeb's voice trailed off. Karabast! Was he getting soft? So soft that he was confiding in the resident rustbucket?

Chopper warbled something, something that Zeb, much to his shock, understood. _"Do my audio receptors deceive me? Is the mighty Garazeb Orellious getting soft?"_

"Be quiet."

 _"You're only saying that because you know I'm right."_

"Fine. You're right. Don't get used to it."

Suddenly the door opened, revealing Hera. She walked towards the chair where Kanan was asleep and shook his shoulder.

Kanan woke with a start but relaxed once he sensed who was there. "Kanan," Hera whispered. "I thought I told you to go to bed!"

"I said only for a few hours."

"It's only been one hour!"

"I guess I miscalculated. Whoops." Kanan's tone made it very clear to Zeb that he was had not miscalculated and was flat out smart mouthing Hera at this point. Zeb shook his head. Kanan just couldn't leave Ezra like this, could he?

"Back to bed. And no leaving until 1000 hours, clear?"

"Clear…" Kanan mumbled as he left the room.

Hera turned to Zeb and Chopper. "You two better rest too. Sabine's on her way."

Zeb nodded. He turned to follow Kanan out but paused when he saw Chopper unmoving. Zeb rolled his eyes with a smile and walked towards Chopper. He picked him up and carried him out of the room. Chopper began protesting angrily. "You need to charge," Zeb snapped.

 _"Definitely a softie."_

"Oh be quiet."

* * *

Sabine had only been in the room a few times. She couldn't stand the sight of her surrogate little brother covered in bandages. She was so scared when she saw Ezra's ship blow up. She didn't see what happened next, as she was running to the hangar. All she saw was the medics hovering over Ezra, his eyes shut and his body limp and covered in frost. What scarred her mind more than anything was the burns that littered his body. His clothes were ripped and charred and his gloves were completely burned off. There were blistered covering some and charring covering others. The more open ones were an angry red and blood was seeping out of some of them. They covered his arms, his legs, heck, his chest looked like the flames literally licked it. His hands were the worst though. The medics said he would still be able to use them, but that in itself was a miracle. Sabine wanted to laugh at that. The fact that Ezra was even alive was a miracle. Most pilots, when their ship exploded, were incinerated in the blast. She may not have understood the Force, but she knew it had something to do with Ezra's survival. Kanan agreed with her.

Now, Ezra looked strangely peaceful. The bandages were still wrapped around him, making him look slightly mummified and the straps and tube on his arm distorted the illusion, but Sabine could see right through the medical equipment and see that peaceful, sleeping face. Ezra looked way too peaceful for someone who almost died the way he did.

Without thinking, Sabine pressed her lips against Ezra's forehead and sighed, tensing slightly when Ezra's eyes fluttered open.

"Sabine?" he whimpered. It was obvious he wasn't going to stay awake for very long until the tube knocked him out again, not long enough to tell anyone. Sabine cringed lightly at Ezra's tone. He sounded so vulnerable and weak.

"Shh. Go back to sleep," Sabine whispered.

Ezra's eyes fluttered shut as the tube hissed and pumped more of the medicine into his veins.

* * *

"Sabine."

Sabine woke with a slight start and groaned softly. Her back ached from having her head resting on the edge of the bed but she was still very tired. She closed her eyes and tried to go back to sleep when felt someone rub her back. "Sabine."

Sabine sat up slowly and rubbed her eyes. She looked down and realized she was still in the medbay. Ezra was still asleep next to her. She looked up to see who woke her. Kanan stood next to her. "We just landed. It's nearly 1200 hours, but you should probably get some sleep. I'll look after him."

Sabine nodded and drowsily left the room.

Kanan sat down where Sabine was and sighed. "You sure know how to scare people, don't you…" he said softly. He knew what it was like to be in space with no protective gear. Cold, no air, unable to do anything except scramble for your life. He could only hope Ezra was unconscious for that part, even though it was highly unlikely and probably even more traumatic. When Maul tried to kill Kanan by tossing him out of the airlock, he was only in space for about fifteen seconds. Ezra was in there for a whole minute, which is about as long anyone can survive. It was truly a miracle Kanan didn't have to bury his padawan.

"You've slept for so long," Kanan continued, even though he knew he wouldn't get a reply. "You've been in and out for almost three weeks now. I don't know what the medics are thinking, but they saved Hera's life before. That's reason enough to know that they know what they're doing. They say it won't be much longer now."

Another few minutes of silence. If someone saw Kanan now, they'd think he was either crazy or liked hearing the sound of his voice. Kanan just wanted a conversation with his kid, even if it was one sided. Kanan grabbed Ezra's hand and sighed again. "You've gotten yourself a couple of scars, couple of blaster burns, and too many concussions for my liking. Guess you really are hard headed, but you really did it this time. I don't think Hera will ever let you out of her sight again and I can't say I blame her. I wish I could have told you this before the accident, but while Hera pulled me out of the mess that was my life after Order 66, you made me myself again. I'm proud to call you my padawan and friend. I know you probably can't hear me, but I'll just have to say it again when you wake up."

Kanan chuckled sadly and leaned back in his chair, never letting go of Ezra's hand.

"I've really become soft, huh?"

* * *

 _ **I wrote Sabine's interaction with Ezra as sisterly, but at the same time, I included it for the Sabezra fans. Next chapter will be the last as this is sadly only a threeshot. Did I get you all in the feels? Because I have no regrets. I find it funny how I started with humor fics and next thing I know, I'm cranking out stuff like this. So the question is, would you like another humor fic? I'm not making promises at this point, but if you guys want it, I'll see what I can do.**_


	3. Home

**_*in a magician voice* For the last chapter, I have brought fluff! Pure, amazing fluff! Enjoy!_**

* * *

Ezra groaned softly as he was gently pulled out of the warm waters of unconsciousness. However, it was not a happy awakening. His entire body burned and ached. His mouth felt like it had been stuffed with cotton and his stomach felt hollow, as if he hadn't eaten in days. His eyelids felt heavy, which made Ezra wonder how long he had been unconscious. He had only flashes of memory that were interrupted by the tube, something Ezra did not appreciate. Oh, well. At least the blasted tube and straps were gone.

Ezra turned his head slowly, and groaned again at the pain that rippled up his neck from lack of movement.

"Ezra?" a voice called out, almost distant. "Ezra, can you hear me?"

"Dad?" Ezra whimpered without thinking. He heard the sound of someone sucking in a breath. Ezra's face tensed in another failed attempt to open his eyes. "Am I dead?"

"No, but you tried."

After some effort, Ezra was finally able to pry his eyes open. When his blurred vision cleared, he saw Kanan's face. He didn't have his mask on, allowing Ezra to see his full face and the shock and concern it held. When he sensed Ezra fully regain consciousness, he smiled. "Welcome back, buddy."

"What happened?" Ezra whispered, his voice hoarse. "The last thing I remember is my ship exploding. How am I still alive?"

"The medics were wondering the same thing. You…" Kanan hesitated, unsure if he was ready to explain what happened. He shook his head and sighed. "I don't know what you did, but you survived the explosion. You were thrown into space, but Hera was able to get you back onto the light cruiser and the medics were able to get you breathing again. You got some pretty nasty burns, so they kept you under medication until they were healed."

"How long was I out?" Ezra asked, though he could only guess.

Kanan sighed. "You've been out for about three weeks. They finally decided to take you off the medicine last night and let you wake up on your own."

"I had flashes of waking up, but I thought I was dreaming. I had a nightmare though. I was lying down strapped down on a bed. I don't know if that was real or not."

Kanan pursed his lips. "It may or may not have been…"

Ezra's eyes widened. "Why would they do that?"

"Because they didn't want you moving around and worsening your injuries. Honestly, I thought the straightjacket treatment was a bit too much, but the medics here knew what they were doing. They did save your life." Kanan sighed as he narrowed his sightless eyes. "It was more than I could do anyway…"

"Kanan?" Ezra asked, concern in his hoarse voice.

"Nothing…" Kanan replied. "I'm fine. I'll go tell the others you're awake."

Ezra nodded as Kanan stood and left the room.

* * *

One by one, over the course of a several hours, the crew came and went.

Sabine was the first one to enter the room. Her hair was a mess due to the fact that she was trying to catch up on lost sleep when she got the news. She had bolted out of bed and towards the medbay, not caring about appearance. She was still suffering from the grogginess that came after a short nap, but was alert all the same. "Welcome back," Sabine greeted.

"Good to be back," Ezra replied. "Nice bedhead."

"You have quite the rat's nest yourself," Sabine replied with a smile. "You should know that you scared everyone to death. Even Chopper was worried."

"That bad, huh?"

"Yeah, Zeb and Chopper actually got along while you were sleeping."

"Did I also miss Mustafar freezing over?"

"Not quite."

Sabine ruffled Ezra's hair and they continued chatting until Zeb came in and told Sabine dinner was ready.

* * *

"Karabast!" Zeb cried. "Don't scare us like that!"

Ezra flinched at Zeb's harsh tone.

Zeb felt a pang of guilt. "I'm…I'm sorry…I…"

Ezra shook his head. "It's fine. That's all everyone's telling me. It's either about how much I scared them or my condition. I'm used to it."

"No, it's not fine…" Zeb muttered. "What happened wasn't your fault. It was on the Empire. I'm just glad you're alive. The ship would get pretty boring without you."

Ezra smirked. "Oh, ha ha. What about you? If me getting hurt was all it took for you to get along with Chopper, I should have gotten hurt ages ago."

Zeb shrugged. "Not my problem Chopper is getting soft?"

"Chopper? Not in a million years. I think you're the one who's getting soft."

Zeb rolled his eyes. "As much as I hate to admit it, I think that much may be true…"

"So...are you admitting I'm right?"

"Don't get used to it."

* * *

Hera was the last one, as she was too afraid to see Ezra. She was relieved that he was alive and was going to make a full recovery. However, she couldn't shake that image of Ezra floating in space in the middle of debris, badly burned and covered in frost. _"How can I face him? This is my fault…"_

Hera sighed. She took a deep breath and willed the butterflies in her stomach to go away before she entered the room.

Ezra looked better. He looked tired, but he looked better than he did before. The bed was cranked up so that the padawan was lying in a semi-seated position. She quietly sat down next to Ezra, the silence continuing for too long. Eventually, it became too unbearable. "Say something, Hera…" Ezra murmured. "Anything…"

Hera sighed and took Ezra's hand. "I'm sorry…" she whispered.

"For what?" Ezra asked.

Hera narrowed her eyes sadly. "I should never have let you on that mission." Ezra chuckled painfully. "What?"

"You say that as if I'm dead," Ezra replied.

"Well, you almost were. You weren't breathing when Kanan pulled you into the hangar. If it weren't for the medics…" Hera's voice trailed off, unable to finish her sentence.

"But I'm alive," Ezra pressed.

"Barely…" Hera sighed once more. "Was this how it was when I was shot down on Concord Dawn?"

"Pretty much. You were pretty bad off. Flatlined several times."

"So did you. Besides, I wasn't ejected into space."

"Might as well have been. The cabin pressure was dropping when we got you back." Ezra sighed, wanting badly to change the subject. "How is everyone?"

"Kanan's exhausted, but he refuses to admit it," Hera replied. "We all are. Everyone missed you. You scared us to death."

Ezra smiled. "So what else is new?"

Hera, despite herself, laughed.

And just like that, the butterflies flew away.

* * *

"Are you okay?"

Kanan snapped out of his daze with a start and turned towards the sound of Hera's voice. "I should be asking you," he replied. "You've been blaming yourself for this whole thing when you shouldn't be."

Hera snorted. "Like you aren't doing to same thing. Besides, I came to ask you if you're alright. You've been kind of out of it lately."

"I'm fine."

Hera sighed. "We both know that's not the case. Let's talk in private."

The two made their way to Kanan's cabin on the _Ghost_. They both sat down on the edge of Kanan's bed. "Spill it," Hera said gently. "What's wrong?"

Kanan sighed, then spoke. "When they were trying to bring Ezra back…" His voice trailed off, but he didn't need to finish. Hera understood.

"You were scared. I could tell. You hadn't been that scared in a long time."

"But I wasn't just scared. I felt so kriffing helpless. Ezra was dying after being ejected from his fighter and all I could do stand by. Hera, we could have been burying him right about now. That kind of thing really shakes me up."

"You really care about him," Hera pointed out.

"I always cared about him. He knows that."

"Go talk to him," Hera said gently.

Kanan nodded and stood. Hera followed him to the medbay. She watched as master and padawan talked, and a smile graced her face when Ezra threw his arms around Kanan, who immediately returned the hug.

At that moment, Hera knew it would be okay.

Just like that.

 **Fin**

* * *

 _ **And that's it! Hope you enjoyed! Don't have much in the way of closing remarks so I will bid you adieu!**_

 _ **Thief, out!**_


End file.
